Back at the USO

It's volunteer night. Got to get my strength training in when I get home before bed. This week I'm increasing my mileage. 2/2/3.5 (possibly 4), but we'll see.

The glare from my flash and the window obscured the painting of Bob Hope. So just know there's Bob Hope in the background. :)

Day 31

Will just post photos for now. More later.

Day 30: Busy busy busy

My shift at the USO was super busy last night. I was on my feet in the kitchen all night, and my back is sore. But I was able to STAND (which is oddly harder than walking) for nearly the entire four hours which was a victory. I wasn't up to walking today and had a lot of commitments to keep, so tomorrow will have to be my long walk day. So tired. More later.
Hope everyone is having great weekend.

Week Five Begins

Yesterday I did an extra 1.5 miles and my strength training so I took a rest today. Tomorrow is my BIG WALK day. I'm going to do three miles or maybe 3.5, but I'll check really carefully. I'm a little sore today, but actually very excited about the soreness being in the actual muscles that I was working out instead of my back. I had the greatest organic zucchini with dinner. It didn't need anything on it. That magic box has really made it easy to eat clean. :)

Today I'm grateful I got to:
• Rest
• Eat SIX servings of fruits and vegetables
• Drink SIX glasses of water

Week Four Ends on a High

I did 1 1/2 sets (2 sets of push-ups and bicep curls though, and a not quite 1/2 a set of those pesky dips) of all my upper body exercises WITHOUT any weird spasms or shooting pain. I'm hurting, but no numbness or anything weird. I started off doing two sets of the first exercise and could feel it was too much, so I went with one and half, but when I felt like I had a little extra at the end I did two sets of the last exercise. Bicep curls are easier than the other stuff. The stretches were easier, too. Although, those are the ones that actually seem to hurt after, because I hold my body tightly all the time. I'm one of those people. Massage therapists always just freak out when I get on the table, which reminds me I have to get to a massage. AND learn to R-E-L-A-X my muscles. Anybody recommend anything I can read on this?

I think when I tried before the weight was too high and I was just didn't start slow enough. But what's important is that I accurately gage where my START is and just progress as I can. I'M SO HAPPY. I know it sounds so dinky, but it's a real victory to push a little without getting hurt. I seemed to have swung from pushing too hard and getting re-injured and rehab then getting a little better and then pushing too hard getting re-injured MORE rehab. I really think I've finally reached a place where I'm functional and can PROGRESS toward being FIT and BREAK this nearly four-year cycle. I just have to be patient and not get ahead of myself. Michael (from Michael's Fat Burning Machine) did it. So can I. I just keep hearing my Mom's voice, "Don't get carried away, kid." Man, my life would have been so much easier if I just listened to my mom. lol

I decided to go to the movies after staring at my computer screen (My friend Jonathon Lipow is a voiceover guy and he did the snarls and grunts for The Hulk and the Abomination. Isn't that cool?) So I WALKED to the theater and got in another 1.5 miles. (I got my days mixed up yesterday, so tomorrow I'll rest and Saturday do the BIG WALK day.) The Incredible Hulk was fun and those snarls were great.

The box of organic fruit and vegetables came. The thing about organic stuff is it doesn't look as shiny and pretty as the chemically stuff (which I eat a lot of because of budgetary concerns) but it tastes SO GOOD.

Also, re: my business I've surpassed last months earnings already and there's still a few days to go on the month. Plus all this week I've had consistently great traffic to my thank you notes site. Last month I had 90,000 unique visitors and a little over half a million page views, and but this month I've already beaten it with 95,000 unique visitors and 550,000 page views and there's still four days left. I've had a lot 5,000 visitor days (not on the weekends hehe) BUT Mondays are big for me and there's still one more left.

Today I'm grateful I got to:
• Eat SIX servings of fruits and veggies
• Drink FIVE glasses of water
• Walk 1.5 miles
• Post TWO webpages

Day 27: Otter Vision Mission

Today was my 1.5 mile day again. Tomorrow will be my 3 mile day. Then Sat. Rest Day.

Next week I'll try 2-2-4. We'll see if I can hit that four. I haven't been able to get passed three miles in one walk without hurting. But I'm doing the gradual thing and taking rest days so we'll see. No weird back spasms so today I'm gonna do my upper body strength training and go for a SECOND set.

That awesome box of veggies will come tomorrow.

Today I'm grateful I got to:
• Walk 1.5 miles
• Eat FIVE servings of fruits and vegetables
• Drink SIX glasses of water

PS Couldn't upload this to blogger last night, but just got it up. :)

Adam wrote about time today

If you haven't read Adam's post today on Adam Waters : RTP Blog 2.0
check it out.

Adam asked the shreddersphere, "Does this feeling of uncertainty drive you to live every day as if it were your last?" My answer is Yes.

My first major boyfriend in college committed suicide after we broke up. I think I was 22 at the time. After that, the number of people I got to know, love, and mourn their death just kind of grew. I've always had a great respect for the fragility of life and the having grieved and celebrated the lives of many close friends, lovers, family, and co-workers that have left this plane of existence has really solidified that lesson.

However, this is a shredder blog and how does this effect my shredding? Frankly, on some days it looks like NOT SHREDDING. Yeah, really it does. I don't want to live my life sad that I didn't hit my a body fat percentage or staying home because I don't want to be tempted by the food or with my mind pre-occupied on what I can or can't eat at a party instead of enjoying the celebration of my friends and loved ones. I don't want to feel like a failure, because I've gained a few pounds. Life is just too short.

BUT I don't want my last day to be MISSING OUT on going to see my friends because of my darn back. Feeling ugly at a big awards banquet, because I wanted to look nice in my dress and it fits crappy. I don't want my life to be about regret and I don't want it to be about obsession.

In short, I'm looking to add great health to a great life. To be fit and healthy so that it doesn't factor negatively on all the other wonderful, fun, things that life has to offer. I want to feel confident on a date and be able to RUN to catch a plane. I want to be able to help a friend move into a new house.

That said, I've noticed that there are shredders who REALLY ENJOY making their fitness the CENTER POINT in their life. It's their calling in life. It's not mine, BUT I see their undeniable joy and think to myself, "There has got to be a way that I can make my exercise and eating into a joyous process." That's why I try my best to celebrate what I've done and not beat myself up too much about what I didn't. I try to focus on the foods that are healthy that I really like instead of on what I can't have.

There is so much more I have to say on this topic, but I'm kind of hyper and rambling. In short, my dedication to my overall mission of living healthy shredder lifestyle is more an exercise in moderation (which has never been my forte in life) and a strive for balance. I want to live my last day being of service, loving and enjoying the company of my fellow man. Some days it means eating clean and shredding hard and some days not so much. ;)

********

I have so much actual shredder stuff to report. I've altered my strength training to having my little water weight half full so and only doing ONE set of 15 reps for each upper body exercise to insure that I could get through the ENTIRE repertoire of exercises without having to stop because of any shooting back pains. AND I DID IT. Except for the dip things, which I could only do three of (but not because of a spasm) I really can only do three of those things they're tough.

Then, my eating has been all crazy so I splurged and ordered a fresh box of organic fruits and vegetables expertly selected and home delivered to me for Thursday. So I'll have delicious, fresh veggies and fruits for me to eat throughout the whole week. It was about $42 and the delivery was free. The poor selection at the market, my inability to pick out the good stuff from the bad, and not having good food choices on hand has been hindering my the joy of progressing on my mission. So, I decided to go for a FUN solution, and and just work harder to earn some extra money. It's actually not that expensive considering how much eating out and what I would spend at the grocery store on canned and frozen stuff.

Today I'm grateful I got to:
• Do strength training (I'm sore, but no super bad pains so far YAY!)
• Drink FIVE glasses of water
• Eat THREE servings of fruits and veggies

At the USO

I thought I'd do something different a post a pic of me at the USO. I'm picking up an extra shift this Friday, because they're short a volunteer. That's another PRW to stay fit and healthy enough to be of service. Still gotta get my strength training in today, luckily for me I'll be up for another eight hours. :)

Day 25: Back in Business

PRW Day was awesome. I'm still catching up on everybody's powerful reasons why. It's really motivating. I forgot to take my pic before I got ready for bed so it's baggy pajamas today, but I didn't stay in the them all day.

I've been thinking about my goals and my life and doing more research about it. I've been reading about training to walk marathon, and in order to begin the ideal 19-week training program, I would have to be able to walk eight miles without stopping.

I've been reading about the best way to build more mileage, and an every other day program with one "long" day seems to be the best way. On the alternate days I'm going to do some upper body strength training ANOTHER try (really, really slowly)and take a full on rest day once a week.

The LA Marathon is March 1 2009--about 38 weeks away. It's just something I'm keeping in mind.

Regarding my business goals. I have been busy learning how to do more things with my sites and how to bring more traffic--particularly with more links and diversifying how I revenue opportunities. I don't like to have all my eggs in one basket.

I guess with my business and fitness, I'm focusing on working smart.

Today I'm grateful I got to:
• Walk 1.5 miles
• Eat FIVE servings of fruits and vegetables
• Drink FOUR glasses of water

PRW Day

Thanks to Debbie: of Debbie Can We Talk Blog.

My Powerful Reasons Why I Want to Take Care of My Health

• Never use a walker again.
• Be physically able to go anywhere.
• Never worry about stairs or bending down.
• To feel what it's like to run until I'm breathless without being scared.
• To feel strong.
• To be able to lift my own suitcase off that airport conveyor belt thingy and put my carry-on luggage into the overhead compartment.
• To feel YOUNG.
• Live pain free.
• Confidence.
• Fit into clothes I like.
• To heal faster should fate ever dole out another accident.

The last one is inspired by Dougal. Just seeing how quickly and confidently he has attacked recovering from an accident that would have actually killed anyone that did not have such great health is really inspiring. I've re-injured myself so many times during my recovery, simply because I didn't have the base level of fitness and know-how to recover. I'm getting there with a lot of help from my shredder friends.

Tomorrow is PRW Day!

I'll write more and get reconnected with everybody and myself tomorrow.

End of Week Three

Wow! Where did week three go?

I just saw there were even more supportive shredder comments about my bummer week, and I've got to say SHREDDERS are the best.

Thank you guys so much for all your great support. And I thought I'd just give some more shout outs on my blog to everybody who commented on my most recent (I know I have more than most) bummer day:

Thank You Suzette from Suzette's Quest for Success for citing one of the most golden pieces of Truth I try to live by, "seek ye first the kingdom of God and all these things shall be added unto you."

Thank You To CK aka Christina's Blog My Modal Life for reminding me of the progress I've made so far and her encouragement of blogging about your feelings.

Thank You Michael from Michael's Fat Burning Machine for "being with me" and for setting such a great example of persistence.

Thanks again to Lynda for all the virtual hugs and good wishes. Nothing beats a heart of a Texan when you're feeling down.

Last but certainly not least, I want to say thank you to MIKE GROOM, aka Mike's Blog Aussie BodyBuilder
for all his supportive comments throughout this mission and naming his mission Harvey.

Thanks to all the shredders. We're all busy, and are trying to find balance. So your supportive comments and the time it takes to read and type is really appreciated.

Today I'm grateful for:
• My fellow shredder
• I drank FIVE glasses of water
• FOUR servings of fruits and vegetables

PS Our film, "Be Happy With What You Got" screened tonight at the 48 Hour Film Project. We all had a lot of fun, and we campaigned for the audience award with fliers attached to snacks which made it that much more fun, because we got to meet all the attendees. Can't wait to see if our snack bribes worked!

PRW Day On the Way

I was feeling kind of bummed and then I popped over to Lynda's: 130 On My Way Blog and she was talking about this Saturday being PRW day in the shreddersphere.

The idea came from Debbie's Can We Talk blog. I think it's just what the doctor ordered for me. PRW day is this Saturday. Read all about it in Debbie's PRW Callout Entry earlier this week.

PRW stands for Powerful Reason Why. And there are some very powerful reasons why many of us have been focusing on our health. Dougal's Mind Body Superfit has one of the most powerful reasons why that is really helping me connect with my own personal journey. Everything seems more possible.

Thank you, Lynda and Rob of Rob's Body for Life for your kind words today.

I'll update with photos and my gratitude list later today.

Not feeling it

I'm not really "feelin' it" right now. What I am feeling is a little overwhelmed and kinda tubby to be honest. I'm really steering away from too much of the rah-rah, get in there and do it and beat myself up when I don't thing. It's just too easy of a pattern for me to fall into, and I've seen people actually do really well with a no excuses just do it thing, but it doesn't work for me. I get pumped up and drop lower than I was before when I crash. But I did make a commitment to be honest about where I'm at in my journey, and I believe that as my friends says, "naming it and claiming it" is sometimes all the solution necessary. So I'm feeling fat. I'm feeling disconnected. I'm feeling like I've changed my focus from a more Spirit-centered life to a task-centered life. I've found when my focus is more on my meditation and reading and service to others, everything else just gets easier and more tasks get done. But lately I've gotten into "grinding it out" and sure enough, stuff has became a grind, and then things have kind of ground to a halt. I'm not gonna abandon my mission or my goals, but I'll recognize that feeding my connection with to God, the rest will take care of itself.

Day 17

I took a rest and had a great day. Just went to Agape's early service to hear Dr. Michael speak and then to lunch with my Lori. A good friend of mine's father died this year, and we spent a lot of time on the phone last night and today. I kind of remember what that first Father's day was like. To borrow a phrase that my friends use often, it was nice to be of service.


I hope all shredder Dads and shredder dad-husbands had a really great day. I sure did. :)

Exhausted

Busy driving all over town and attempting to help with my friend, Milda's movie. Basically, my only success was picking up lunch for everybody, but that's show business. It was nice to see things come together, and I managed to get a mile of walking in hunting around the local shops for props.

Today I'm grateful I got to:
• Eat FOUR servings of fruits and veggies
• Drink Four glasses of water
• Walk a mile

Day 15: And we're off ...

to the races!! Literally. I was at the Hollywood Park Racetrack & Casino tonight and came out a winner. An by an entire $2.20! Way to go Number 3 in the 7th! Then I was off to pitch into a brainstorming session for my friends Brett and Milda, who are entering the 48 Hour Film Festival. The plot was already set, so I didn't get to contribute as much as usually would, but it's always fun to be involved in somebody's dream. It's a cool festival. People draw topics and genres out of a hat and are given specific lines and character names that have to be in the film. Then they have 48 hours to write, shoot, and edit the film. The screening is Thursday. Really fun.

Today I'm grateful I got to:
• Put up FIVE pages. Yee-ha
• Walk .75 miles
• 13 wall push-ups and 1 girl push-up FINALLY! (I had to dial back on my strength training thing, but I feel like I have to do SOMETHING)
• Eat SIX servings of fruits and vegetables
• Drink FIVE glasses of water

Day 14: Week three starts tomorrow

I may have overdone it in my first week, and I kind of "paid" for it in week two. But I haven't done anything too drastic so I'll search for a middle ground in week three. I'll hit my 20/20 goal in no time. I REALLY need to be careful to avoid injury as I have no health insurance and financially speaking I'm not on the most solid ground--no room to go to expensive physical therapists and orthopedists. I need to just get through these next few months with my business and I'll be home free.

Today I'm grateful I got to:
• Drank Four glasses of water
• Ate four servings of fruits and vegetables
• Put up two new pages
• Walked 2 miles
• Got plenty of rest

So in total this week I walked three miles and put up 7 pages. I'm grateful to have lots of room for improvement. :)

Day 12: Pajama Party

Man, did I need to SLEEP. I slept all day, (had the USO last night until 6am again), read up on some new stuff I need to know for my business, and cooked a nice dinner for me and my sister. I spent the ENTIRE day in my pajamas. Ahh. One day in pajamas is a luxury. Two days in pajamas EQUALS depression. So, I'm making a point to get in some walking tomorrow even if it means walking really, s-l-o--w. Edie and I are going to be doing Weight Watchers CORE program. I've used the Flex point system from time to time to much success. I used it during the first 14 day group shred with great results, but I don't want to limit my food intake too much and want to keep my focus on eating a wide variety of nutritious foods. Edie became a lifetime WW member using the CORE plan, so I'm reading all about it. So Day 12 is my educational Pajama Party!


Today I'm grateful I got to:
• Rest!
• Eat FOUR servings of vegetables
• Post one new page on my thank you notes site.

Got to get to the USO

I had a shift last night and some other volunteer work today, and I get another shift tonight. I walked a little bit, but not so much. But I'm feeling much better. No pages today.

I'm grateful today I got to:
• Eat FIVE servings of fruits and vegetables
• Drink FOUR glasses of water
• Went to USO
• Walked 1/2 mile

Day 10: Stepping off a little

I won't even complain about my little twingy pains when our dear shredder friend Dougal: Mind Body Superfit has really been tested physically. I'll just note that I walked only 1/2 a mile a day and really did my hip and lower back stretches, because the tightness and bad spasmy stuff is on the rise. There's nice sore and then there's sort of an uh-oh be careful sore. I've mistakenly ignored the uh-oh sore and re-injure my back an embarrassing number of times BUT I'm thinking I've got it sorted out. I'm gonna get a nice massage and really make sure to do the stretches and back exercises and walk more often, but shorter distances in an attempt to more gradually build up my mileage. No pages today. I took the weekend off. :)

I'm grateful I got to:
• Walk 1/2 mile
• Stretch
• Eat FIVE servings of fruits and veggies
• Drink FIVE glasses of water
• Meditate
• Read a chapter from a spiritually enriching book

PS The show went really great. I was hosting my sister's bands CD release party. It's always weird hosting a music show and doing comedy, ESPECIALLY an afternoon show. But it went really great. The show even got a mention in the OC Weekly, but they listed the time wrong. But my sister got a good plug in the CD review, which is what I really cared about. :)

Just in case

I've got a show this afternoon, a dinner, and then an art show later so I might not get to my blog before midnight. This photo is here just in case. I'll go back and merge it proper late tongiht or tmorrow.

Week 2 Begins

I had to take a rest day from my workouts. I had some twingy,achy stuff happening. I'm not going to injure myself again. I'm sure it'll be fine by tomorrow. Just being safe. I'm feeling good. I got FOUR pages up today.

I'm going to treat myself with new pants at the end of this mission. In the meantime, I borrowed an old pair of my sister's jeans. They're not tight, but not the kind of cut I like. BUT they're a Size 10 and even a little baggy. Woo-hoo!

Day 7: Week One Complete

Wow. A week can really go by fast. Eight more to go. I'm really excited about this plan. There's lots of room for improvement, but I set really ambitious targets and have gotten way more done than I have ever gotten done before. The most mileage I've ever walked in a week until now was just six miles.

This week I walked 15.85 miles and I put up 11 pages. I would have considered it a big week on my website if I got up one page a day, but this week I got up more. That doesn't mean that I won't be working hard tomorrow to get a great start on hitting my 20/20 goal, but I'm so psyched. I've gotten DOUBLE what I'd normally get done DONE and I'm already seeing results in my business. Hello new apartment here I come.


I'm grateful I got to:
• Eat FIVE servings of fruits and veggies
• Drink SIX glasses of water
• Walked 3 miles
• Posted 3 webpages

Day 6: Rest and No rest

I'm pretty sore so I needed to take a break from walking and working out. I've got to make sure not to reinjure myself, but I'm feeling pretty great about this week. I turned up the heat on my web page building though and put five pages up. I'm still working though. So I'm gonna keep at it to hit my weekly goal. My week starts on Friday so tomorrow is the last day of my week. More later.

Day 5: Awesome and exhausting day

I'm actually sore. My legs and feet mostly. Ouch. Pretty soon my arms will be sore, too thanks to my new strength trainging. woo-woo.

I've been researching and writing so I haven't posted ANY pages. Tomorrow is going to have to be a BIG day to meet my 20/20 goal. Although, my daily advertising revenue jumped yesterday by over 30%! Today has been my BIGGEST earnings day for advertising ever. I'm so excited. If this growth pace keeps up, I'll be able to move into a new apartment by the end of this mission. I walked 2.75 miles today, and I'm so sore. That brings my total in mileage this week to: 12.85 miles. I've got two days left for week one, so I ought to hit my 20 mile goal this week pretty easily. However my web page need to go up QUICK. :)

Day 4: Bargain Shopping Meets Walking

I'll update in a few hours. I've got to nap before my shift at the USO, but in case I'm not up before midnight I didn't want to miss out on my accountability pics.

Howdy! I'm writing from the USO! :) How cool is that? Michael and CK asked about my strength training. I've been saying I'm going to start, but thanks to your comments on encouragement, I'm starting sooner than later. Okay, so here's my stats as of today:

weight: 154
height: 5/5 1/2"
waist: 33.25"
hips: 39.5"
bust: 41"
rt bicep: 12 1/4"
lft. 12 1/4"
rt thigh: 23 1/2
lt. thigh: 23 1/2
rt. calf 14 3/4
lft. calf 14 3/4"
rBody fat %: 32.7%

Today I was grateful I got to:
• Walk 3.5 miles
• Eat FIVE servings of fruits and vegetables
• Drink SIX glasses of water
• Write FOUR webpages (but have yet to post them so not completed)

I walked to the shops around my neighborhood and spied this cute little bargain kit on sale at the Crown discount books. This will get me started. :)

Day 3: 20/20 Otter Vision Mission

I've got to get around to everybody's blogs, but I've got a lot going on right now. I haven't completely processed my feelings around being sad about my Dad, and living in "limbo" as far as my living situation. Plus dating stuff is coming up. It feels like the entire world is dividing up into couples, and I'm feeling a little lonely, which is dangerous, because I wouldn't mind a boyfriend, but I WANT A GREAT ONE. Not just somebody who isn't bad. If I hear one more woman tell me that she might as well make things work with the guy she's dating now, because she doesn't want to die alone I'm gonna frickin' SCREAM. Really? "Make it work" with someone who is just "okay" or worse "kinda not okay" or DIE ALONE. Those are the choices??? But I digress...

I'm really committed to my Mission, because it's really necessary. I've noticed I gained some weight. I just don't have time to worry about that. I'm 36 and working on building a life, and I've kind of FINALLY got into the place where I don't hate the way I look or my body and if I put ONE OUNCE of energy into worrying about my weight it's a slippery slope into obsession and depression and I'll be back to yo-yo dieting and anxiety attacks. SO NOT WORTH IT. So I'm focused on my business and mobility and just eating nourishing foods for my body and the rest is just gonna have to take a back seat for now and maybe even forever. I weigh 155 lbs, which is according any chart on the Universe overweight. Just a point of fact. I've weighed 7-10 lbs less in recent history, but I was wobbling around fresh off my walker, and today I can over two miles in one go for over an hour, and I really just NEVER WANT TO USE A WALKER AGAIN. I'd be lying if I said the weight thing doesn't bother me, but I'm just gonna move past those thoughts as quickly as possible and focus on eating quality food (which I didn't do today as much, funny how that coincided with my being bummed about my weight) and walking and my back exercises. But this mission I will do the total stats thing. I'm gonna measure everything tomorrow. Put it up here and then check it at the end. Then I can make adjustments to kick it up a notch on the next plan, if necessary, AT THE TIME when I have a nice new apartment, my business is rolling along nicely, AND my strength and stamina will be at a place where I can really do something about it.

All I think about is how good it would feel to know that I could just walk as far as I wanted any day I want and not feel afraid of stairs or bending over or any of that. I've been doing my research and if I can walk for eight miles straight comfortably, I could actually begin to train to walk a marathon. I could almost cry every time I think about. Ever step is one step further from that walker. I never want to be trapped in a bed for months at a time again, and I want my own apartment again SO BAD. I just gotta take it one step and one page at a time. Let's see what can happen if I literally do the footwork and leave the rest up to God.

Today I'm grateful I got to:
• Walk 1.6 miles
• Eat TWO serving of fruits and vegetable (what? Weird?)
• Drink FOUR glasses of water

Hmm. I've got to get to the store tomorrow and buy more food. I think I'll walk there! It's only two miles each way. :)